BoxRec

Well.............?

Tommy Hearns with an iron chin isn't Tommy Hearns. The vulnerability and the fact that he COULD be hurt was a part of what made him so thrilling to watch.

A lot of people tend to think that punchers have a tendency to have weaker chins. I don't think it's that so much as Punchers because they know they can hurt and knock out their opponent are much more willing to engage because they're always trying to knock out their man. When you're pursuing the KO you're opening yourself up to be KO'ed more so it just kinda comes with the territory that the bigger hitters also place themselves in more danger.

So I don't know that a lot of the defensive minded guys have better chins necessarily, they just take a different approach to the fights altogether.

But yeah...for the sake of argument if Tommy took a shot like Jake Lamotta he'd have been hell on wheels....more so.

He certainly would have been a better fighter and therefore even more difficult to beat. Would not go as far as saying unbeatable though. Always thought his chin was not as some people think. Even when he was stopped, it was after taking several good shots.

"Tommy Hearns with an iron chin isn't Tommy Hearns"

Yes -- But Hearns would still be very beatable.... Iran Barkley wasn't that great a boxer was he??? ... Bark not only knocked Hearns out with punches that would have rattled most Middleweight Champs -- he also beat Tommy on points.

But Barkley was outboxed by James Toney.... Sumbu Kalambay.... Michael Nunn.... Adolpho Washington and others.... To be hit so cleanly by the slow swinging Barkley proves Hearns wasn't a particularly stupendous boxer.

The Hitman wasn't a good inside fighter.

Terry Norris was a very speedy kid with a hard punch and a soft chin.... Norris had a few defensive flaws,which led to a few KO defeats - but he was faster and a better boxer than Iran Barkley ever was.. Norris was brilliant at his zenith, which came against Leonard.. Pudgy little Duran was well out-boxed by unknown Robbie Sims... but he managed to time and pick off the slower and less clever Barkley when he was 37... Duran survived to old age without a perfect training schedule - cuz he was a nifty boxer with a deep bag of tricks.

James Toney pounded on Iran Barkley like he owned him -- as most elite boxers did.... The only top guy who got owned by Barkley was the skinny, bandy legged, raggedly swinging Hearns... No wonder Tommy got knocked out 3 X during his 20's... I love the way Hagler flattened the chinny skinny, swinger... Marv kept pointing to his baseball cap that said "DISTRUCT and DISTROY" at the weigh-in. Hearns pissed his pants... Leonard fought a much smarter fight vs Hagler... He boxed him, which is the only way to beat a rubber headed swinger who can punch... Hagler lost 3 X -- every time to a clever boxer.

All good points fellas. I always wondered how Tommy would have done if not for that punching power. He would really have been difficult to beat had he boxed and made defense, priority one.

I see you're shamefaced about your broad brush condemnation of Americans...

What difference does is make if you have 54 fights and get your ass knocked out several times like Hearns did??? .... Leonard didn't get knocked out by Terry Norris....just badly outboxed and embarrassed.... Roberto Duran had 64 fights from Bantamweight through Lightweight... Yet Duran beat Iran Barkley for the Middleweight Title when he was 37 and had 91 fights worth of wear and tear... Duran still beat the slow swinging Barkley to the punch all night by popping him with quick punches.... He didn't try to knock him out and leave himself a wide open target in the process.

Duran wanted to fight Leonard,, Hearns, and Hagler, even though he was smaller, lost to all of them, and was ring worn and getting worse not better.... But he knew the fights were box office magic... "I was really poor when I was a kid. I like money."

In the end you're a professional fighter for the money...win or lose... Just don't get knocked out, that's for chumps.